Silica and Lead Awareness
For workers, supervisors and safety representatives in construction, renovation, fabrication and industry: why silica and lead still cause disease, respirable crystalline silica and silicosis, the OSHA silica standards 1926.1153 and 1910.1053 with Table 1, the action level and written exposure control plans, assessing exposure with personal sampling, wet methods and properly sized vacuum dust collection, engineered stone and other high-risk work, how lead enters and harms the body, the OSHA lead standards 1910.1025 and 1926.62 with trigger tasks and medical removal, the EPA RRP Rule and dust-lead standards, paint testing, air and wipe sampling, safer removal, containment and hygiene, medical surveillance for both hazards, and a capstone exposure control plan for an older building.
HSE-242 12 lessons · 5 h 12 min
Offered by HSM University · Safety Training
This is the American version of this course. See the Canadian version.
What you'll learn
- Explain why silica and lead remain serious occupational hazards, who is exposed, and how latency, cumulative exposure and legacy materials keep the problem alive.
- Distinguish crystalline from amorphous silica, identify materials and tasks that produce respirable crystalline silica, and describe silicosis, lung cancer and the other diseases it causes.
- Apply the OSHA silica PEL and action level in 29 CFR 1926.1153 and 1910.1053, compare them with the ACGIH TLV and NIOSH REL, and use mixture and long-shift adjustments.
- Choose between Table 1 and exposure assessment, plan and interpret personal sampling, and calculate TWAs and detection limits for silica.
- Select silica controls through the hierarchy, including elimination, wet methods, properly sized vacuum dust collection, enclosed cabs, housekeeping and respirators, and calculate combined control effectiveness.
- Recognize engineered stone fabrication and other high-risk silica work, describe recent regulatory responses, and specify the controls each requires.
- Identify occupational sources of lead, explain how lead is absorbed, distributed and stored, convert blood lead units, and describe its effects on adults, children and the fetus.
- Apply the OSHA lead standards, including the PEL, action level, long-shift formula, trigger tasks and medical removal levels, and the EPA RRP Rule and dust-lead standards.
- Assess lead exposure using paint testing, air sampling, surface wipe sampling and blood lead results, converting between the units used for each.
- Select lead controls, including leaving paint in place, safer removal methods, containment with negative pressure, hygiene facilities, clean-up, waste handling and respirators.
- Describe medical surveillance for silica and lead, interpret spirometry trends and blood lead results with tiered action levels, and protect confidentiality and workers' rights.
- Prepare and review a combined silica and lead exposure control plan for an older building, including hazard identification, task controls, hygiene, monitoring, clearance criteria and cost.
Course content
12 lessons · 5 h 12 min total · final exam
- 1 Why silica and lead are still a problem 27 min · quiz
- 2 Respirable crystalline silica: sources and health effects 26 min · quiz
- 3 Silica law and exposure limits 25 min · quiz
- 4 Assessing silica exposure 25 min · quiz
- 5 Controlling silica dust 26 min · quiz
- 6 Engineered stone and other high-risk silica work 25 min · quiz
- 7 Lead: sources and health effects 25 min · quiz
- 8 Lead law and exposure limits 28 min · quiz
- 9 Assessing lead exposure 26 min · quiz
- 10 Lead controls and hygiene 26 min · quiz
- 11 Medical surveillance and health monitoring 26 min · quiz
- 12 Capstone: a silica and lead exposure control plan 27 min · quiz
- E Final exam 20 questions
Requirements
Recommended background. You can start any course at any time.
Description
For workers, supervisors and safety representatives in construction, renovation, fabrication and industry: why silica and lead still cause disease, respirable crystalline silica and silicosis, the OSHA silica standards 1926.1153 and 1910.1053 with Table 1, the action level and written exposure control plans, assessing exposure with personal sampling, wet methods and properly sized vacuum dust collection, engineered stone and other high-risk work, how lead enters and harms the body, the OSHA lead standards 1910.1025 and 1926.62 with trigger tasks and medical removal, the EPA RRP Rule and dust-lead standards, paint testing, air and wipe sampling, safer removal, containment and hygiene, medical surveillance for both hazards, and a capstone exposure control plan for an older building.